EU's Foreign Minister confirms her support of a UN Parliamentary Assembly

Remarks of the EU's High Representative at an event in Rome

Speaking at an event in Rome, the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, expressed her continued support for the proposal of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, UNPA.

Federica Mogherini speaking in Rome

Image: L. Puccini

"I have not changed my mind since I was a member of the Italian Parliament: a UN Parliamentary Assembly could be a very useful tool," Mrs. Mogherini said in Rome. She continued: "I don’t know how realistic it is to conceive its creation in the short run. But I think that a UNPA would help the UN to be more effective and help the system of global governance to create connections with an active and responsible citizenship. Indeed, a UN Parliamentary Assembly could strengthen the link between a system of global governance, which is remote by definition, and a citizenship that includes a global dimension."

As a member of the Italian Parliament Mrs. Mogherini endorsed the international appeal for a UNPA and authored a parliamentary motion on the subject. In a message on the occasion of the first Global Week of Action for a World Parliament in October 2014, Mrs. Mogherini stated that "the answer that is provided by the cooperation of nation-states is often no longer enough" to respond to "the globalization of economy and finance, the mounting imbalance in the distribution of wealth, or asymmetric threats to international security." She stressed that "There's an increased urgency that political institutions and instruments of participation and democracy also go through a process of globalization. That's why I support the establishment of a UN Parliamentary Assembly."

At the event in Rome, Mrs. Mogherini explained that "I’m a passionate advocate of parliamentary assemblies. I think that parliamentary diplomacy is one of the most powerful tools in the world. I believed it when I was a member of the Italian parliament, and I was even more convinced when I took on my successive responsibilities because I saw the need for a direct connection between citizen representation and the increasing need of international consensus. I experienced this at NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europea, and I see it every day at the European Parliament. Unfortunately, the international and global dimension of parliamentary assemblies are a huge tool whose enormous potential is often denied."

The topic of the event in Rome was EU relations with Latin-America. It was organized on 15 January 2016 by the Istituto Affari Internazionali

Top image: Istituto Affari Internazionali/Leonardo Puccini

Ögmundur Jónasson

In a globalized world – where development is dominated by international corporations, operating under the wings of the most powerful states – the role of democracy needs to be strengthened. The UN power structure reflects these realities, with veto power resting in the hands of the few and mighty in the Security Council. Democratizing the UN is more than timely and a UN Parliamentary Assembly could be an essential element in this.

Torbjörn Tannsjö

Gobal warming can only be handled by a global authority. This will happen once the consequences become conspicuous. But will it be done in a democratic manner? I hope so, and I see the establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assemby as a first step to assure this.

Patricia Schroeder

Without a global parliament, a democratic deficit exists in the way that the world's citizens are involved in global matters. Through elected representatives, a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly would resonate with the global population, providing it with a voice for presenting sensitive issues, to include addressing human rights violations, tackling corruption in governments and international administrations, and promoting democratic rights at all levels.

Fernando Iglesias

There are different ways to build a better global order and many initiatives for any of them. But there is only one path towards a democratic global order: a world parliament. The campaign for a UN Parliamentary Assembly currently is the most advanced initiative in existence that works towards this goal.

Don Davies

Co-operation at the global level is essential and democratic input by citizens inevitably is vital in global governance. For issues such as climate change, this is not a luxury, but a necessity. This points inexorably to the need for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly.

Global Week of Action

In a democratic order, citizens elect representatives at multiple levels. There are city councils, provincial or state parliaments and national parliaments. And yet for global matters that affect each and every person on the planet, there exists no elected world parliament. A world parliament would be an instrument to find and implement solutions that are democratic, accountable and serve the best interest of humanity.

Margaret Zziwa

The fact that there still is no parliamentary body at the UN more and more interferes with the world organization's democratic legitimacy. A UN Parliamentary Assembly would strengthen the democratic nature of the UN and bring it closer to the citizens. That's one of the reasons why the East African Legislative Assembly supports its establishment.

Brigitte Zypries

The idea of a democratically elected world parliament seems like a nice, but still distant dream if one considers the many dictatorships in the world. The establishment of a UN Parliamentary Assembly however, that initially has advisory powers and exercises oversight, could be a good and feasible first step into this direction.

Alfred de Zayas

One promising avenue of giving ... space to the citizens of the planet is the establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, which could start initially as a consultative body and gradually develop into a legislative assembly. This is an ambitious plan, but one that with patience and determination is implementable, taking the European Parliament as a model.